J Korean Neurosurg Soc.  1973 Oct;2(2):15-22.

A Study of Experimental Spinal Cord Injury in the Cat

• Cho MK
• Choi KS
• Sim BS

Abstract

Local spinal cord cooling and glucocorticoid administration have been shown to diminish the degree of traumatic hemorrhagic necrosis and improve spinal cord function after impact injury. Local cooling is said to influence multiple neural enzymatic processes diminish the cellular metabolic rate and lessen the oxygen requirements. Steroid is known to maintain vascular integrity after injury and protect cellular membrane in the state of poor perfusion. As a preliminary report, this experimental study demonstrated the sequence of pathologic changes occurring from hours to days after the spinal cord of a cat had been impacted by a 400gm-cm force respectively and, thereafter evaluated the effect of local cooling and steroid administration on the functional recovery of the spinal cord. Spinal injuries was produced by dropping a 20gm weight 20cm height through a vented guide tube to strike the exposed dura and cord. Animals were sacrificed hours or days after injury. The thoracic cord was removed to include the injured tissue adjacent cord for control. The specimens were taken for histological study and this was correlated with the clinical observation by Tarlov's classification. In the acute group (From 1 hour to 8 hours after injury), multiple hemorrhage and necrosis occurred in the central gray matter and periaxonal swelling in the white adjacent to gray matter. At 15 days all most gray matter was replaced by a large central cavity in which numerous lipid phagocytes were accumulated and disruption of white matter was severe in the adjacent to the cavity. The motor neurons were shown complete central chromatolysis in the all groups.

MeSH Terms

Animals
Cats*
Classification
Hemorrhage
Membranes
Motor Neurons
Necrosis
Oxygen
Perfusion
Phagocytes
Spinal Cord Injuries*
Spinal Cord*
Spinal Injuries
Strikes, Employee
Oxygen